Shovad747

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Shovad747

Thanks and by the way, is PNR number the same as the booking reference number- it seems it’s not mandatory since there is no asterisks next it so can I just leave it blank ?

So will it be fine if I just leave the seat number as 00?

TravellingMan

I would leave anything that is not mandatory (*) blank. So yes, leave the PNR blank and the seat number 00.

The state versions ask for a copy of the ticket along with everything else. Could never understand the reason apart from filling up their databases.

The airline is the only one checking these forms. No one is interested in your Air Suvidha or vaccination records at immigration or elsewhere.

13901

I’m weighing options for a possible trip to Ladakh in June. EU citizen, triple vaccinated in the UK, flying from LHR to DEL and thence to Leh. I seem to understand there shouldn’t be too many issues, correct?

Keyser

Shouldn't be a problem in June, unless of course they change the rules again.

13901

Thank you, I'll keep an eye on how things proceed.

marks88

Data point: entered 3/26 at DEL from US. Zero line at immigration around 8pm; similar for a colleague arriving from SIN the next morning around 6am. I had to show Air Suvidha form and my e-visa. Perhaps because I was on a business e-visa, not tourist, I had to have my photo and fingerprints taken by the immigration officer. All-in-all, 15 minutes from doors opening on the plane to departing airport. Very fast. Lines had formed after me, and from 3/27 more international flights will be coming, so my experience is likely no longer typical.

CuppedUp

You’re lucky. We got hammered at immigration arriving in DEL on 3/19 at 2ish AM. First ones off the plane. Immigration was packed with prior arrivals. Filled out forms. Head to the Biz queue. 10 min wait, we are up next. Get kicked out of that line because boy had an eVisa. Punted into the absolute cluster fudge lines across the hall. Two hours later we finally make it out of there with stamps. Dude didn’t care about air suvidha or vax cards or anything else.

TravellingMan

For arrivals into TN and KL on the ME3, you do need to fill out the local state COVID forms. No one other than the airline checks but it is part of their doc checks.

If you are flying into DEL and then connecting to a local flight no one cares about the state forms.

TravellingMan

The North American banks are about the right time (21:00 - 23:00) to land in DEL. Immigration is quick and so is customs.

Bandicoot

Data point: Arrived at BOM March 28. At BOS, Qatar Airways checked the Air Suvidha form carefully. At BOM, there was one guy somewhere on the long trail you have to hike from the gate to immigration, who was checking the Air Suvidha form, but he was not particularly diligent about it, mostly waving people along if they showed any piece of paper from a distance or pretended to fiddle with their phone looking for the electronic copy. Further ahead there were some desks marked for covid testing, and two officials sitting on stools who were supposed to be selecting random passengers for covid testing, but they were not picking anyone at all, as far as I could tell. And then there was one odd official (at least he seemed to be an official in a white uniform) who tentatively asked me along the way, "Vaccination?" - to which I replied "Yes" and walked on without stopping. I'm not sure whether he was looking for vax cards or someone else also checking for the Air Suvidha (or perhaps asking me if I wanted to get vaccinated? India has a great tradition of hospitality...), but as a general rule in dealing with Indian bureaucracy I avoid increasing my interaction time or producing any documents unless it seems unavoidable.

Immigration was a breeze (2:30am local time) - it seemed there were only a couple of flights arriving at about the same time. Minor glitch - there were none of the usual arrival forms available along the way anywhere, and when I reached the counter and told the officer I didn't have the arrival form she was very apologetic and got out of her booth to search for some for me. (I was fully expecting to be booted out of the line and told to go back and find one somewhere and fill it out.)

Very minor point: The leftmost immigration counters at Mumbai (other than the air crew line) used to be marked as "Business / First Class" - now they say "Business / First Class" and then "Indian Citizens " below that. I didn't notice the latter and out of force of habit got into those lanes, but was not turned away (I have an OCI).

hdoraisamy

I am a vaccinated US citizen with OCI status flying JFK-SIN-MAA in May with a 15 hour layover in SIN. I am planning to exit the airport in SIN during the layover.
Does this cause any problems when I enter India?
Do I have to pay attention to any specific details while filling out the Air Suvidha portal?

GGLwannabe

Checking in at Paris for my flight to Delhi via Helsinki, there was a fair amount of head-scratching, as Finnair's guidance on what's required to get to India was not totally clear. They seemed to think I should have a PCR test, but eventually, when I told the check-in agent and his supervisor, that wasn't required as I had the Air Suvidha form and was fully vaccinated with 3 vaccines, they checked me in. At Helsinki there was no further issue although they did ask to see my Air Suvidha form again.

My flight got in on time at around 06:30 on Sunday 27th, which was clearly a good time to arrive. I spent just 5 minutes queueing at the Business/First immigration counter and when I got to the desk I wasn't asked for the Air Suvidha form at all. Even better, I didn't have to have my fingerprints checked, which has been the norm since I got a 5 year business visa in late 2017. This has previously been a real chore as it seems my fingerprints are not as well defined as the Indian immigration device would like, and I've spent upwards of 15 minutes in the past trying to get a correspondence with the prints taken when I originally got the visa.

So, just one minute while the immigration officer had a look at all of the previous entry stamps in my passport, then the new immigration stamp, and on to the luggage hall, where my suitcase was already trundling towards me.

That was probably the most seamless arrival I've had in India in the last 10 years, but I suspect that next time I arrive, it may be more like normal!

oliver2002

Now Germany is recognizing coaxing so the pcr test requirements are lifted for travellers vaccinated in Germany. What a farce.

sehgalanuj

Well, now it finally makes sense why the German vaccine certificates weren't being recognized. Though I am still confused since I am quite sure Romania, for example, doesn't recognize Covaxin either. But Romania is in the list of approved vaccine certificates, even though the Indian vaccine certificates have been acceptable in Germany for almost a full year now (my parents traveled on them last year). I was "lucky" to get my first two shots in Romania, so traveling to India was easy recently. But had I had my EUDCC from Germany, it wouldn't have worked. What a glorious mess.